Sarah Wells

Sarah Wells

Live Science Contributor

Sarah is a D.C.-based independent science journalist interested in the philosophical questions of science and technology and how research intersects with our daily lives. Her work has appeared in Popular Mechanics, IEEE Spectrum, Inverse, and Nature, among other outlets, and covers topics ranging from AI to particle physics and space travel. She has a master's degree in science journalism from Boston University.

Articles by: Sarah Wells

An older woman with gray hair

Can gray hair be reversed?

By Sarah Wells published

Gray hair is often a sign of aging, but is it possible to delay its advance or reverse the color change?

A photo of the Concorde plane

How did the Concorde fly so fast?

By Sarah Wells published

The Concorde was the fastest commercial plane ever flown, but its speed came with a hefty price tag.

an artist's rendering of the moon in between the Earth and Sun

How far away is the moon?

By Sarah Wells published

The moon's distance from Earth changes depending on where it is in its elliptical orbit.

A young boy covers his ear as a subway train screeches by

Why does metal squeak?

By Sarah Wells published

Squeaking metal can be grating on the nerves, but it serves an important purpose.

An image of a planet superimposed by a network of lasers

Will we ever reach Alpha Centauri, our closest neighboring star system?

By Sarah Wells published

Visiting our nearest stellar neighbor will take near-light-speed travel.

A person holds up a sweater that has shrunk to be comically small

Why does cotton shrink?

By Sarah Wells published

The science of ruining your favorite shirt is more complicated than you might think.

An artist's rendering of the sun rising over the earth

Have days on Earth always been 24 hours?

By Sarah Wells published

Earth's day used to be five hours shorter, and it's predicted to continue lengthening over time.

An artist's rendering of menacing alien monsters standing in a forest

What could aliens look like?

By Sarah Wells published

The search for alien life is one of humanity's greatest missions, but it may look nothing like anything we've seen on Earth.

A photograph of a woman dancing in a hall of mirrors with many reflections behind her

Can mirrors facing each other create infinite reflections?

By Sarah Wells published

Infinite mirrors are a fun party trick, but the physics behind this phenomenon explains why it may not be true.

This animation shows how a black hole bends nearby light depending on the angle at which it is viewed.

The Decade in Astronomy: These Space Discoveries Shaped the 2010s

By Sarah Wells published

As the 2010s come to a close, it's time to revisit how some of the biggest space science stories shaped the decade.